A perfectly executed heist offers an incredible sense of achievement. [Issue#166, p.95]

It's just a shame that there's such a minimal sense of accomplishment from any given task in the game, because this could have been a chance for a star to rise in the West. [Sept 2009, p.118]

The most assured kid-aimed title to hit the market this generation. [Issue#139, p.112]

Don’t venture into Hohokum hoping to understand what it’s all about, just sit back and enjoy the ride.

Loud and silly, but a little hollow. [Issue#182, p.76]

This is a solid start for IO, but it still needs to do a lot to convince us that this release model has more worth to the player than the traditional ‘release a finished game’ method we’ve grown to love and appreciate.

Ignition has such a simple premise that it’s easy to leave alone and come back to at a later date with barely any need to familiarise yourself with the controls or gameplay. [Oct 2007, p.120]

It’s no longer a culturally significant event, and even Lara’s charms are beginning to lose their edge. But make no mistake, it warms our hearts to see Lara back doing what she does best. [Christmas 2008, p.98]

A testament to what the Wii is truly capable of in the hands of a skilled developer that understands the strengths and limitations of the hardware. [Christmas 2009, p.112]

Enjoyed for what it is, this is bold and compelling – it draws from the traditional and the contemporary to deliver a uniquely modern and elegantly told adventure. [July 2006, p.131]

All in all, Trackmania DS is a very worthy addition to both the series and the DS's catalogue of racers, and its multiplayer mode while sadly unable to support Wi-Fi, still allows for some heated competition among friends. [Dec 2008, p.]

In many ways, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes is the biggest and most confident game Kojima has ever made, but you can’t escape the fact that while it’s certainly an immaculate world that has been created, it’s just a small fragment of something much larger we’ve yet to explore.

When only a couple of challenges require you to break the million point barrier, only the weakest players will have trouble acing the game in hours. [Christmas 2005, p.107]

While the great entries to the Sim City series, the Civilizations of the world, even Ubisoft’s Anno series and Galactic Civilizations II all give more back the more you put into it, Tropico 5 is unable to do that. And a lack of longevity in a game that should last so very long is just, ultimately, disappointing.

Mediocrity wins out. [Issue#93, p.124]

If you long to command your own ship (and its admittedly well characterized crew) then there's fun to be had here. Just don't expect an easy, or thrilling, ride. [Apr 2010, p.108]

Fails to capture the imagination. [Issue#193, p.84]

Granted, it may be the thick vein of very British humour running throughout the game that takes some credit for holding frustration at bay. However, Elixir has learnt much from the overly-ambitious Republic and, as such, everything about this title feels far more rounded and polished. [Nov 2004, p.112]

Sandbox silliness at its best. [Apr 2009, p.123]

That it makes no bones about the fact that you're in a game doesn't make it less of an experience - indeed, it's one of the few things that saves Infection from being a run-of-the-mill RPG. [Mar 2004, p.104]

When you reach a dead end, it's usually just a case of retrieving a generic puzzle item from a conveniently inconvenient hiding place before continuing. Cue several minutes of primitive platforming and beating up the undead with a functional combat system before the next 'mash the Triangle button until you find something interactive' session begins. [Nov 2003, p.126]

Anarchic, baffling, sometimes downright silly, and often inspired, Jazzpunk works tirelessly to make you laugh and gasp. The frequency with which you’ll do both is a testament to a bold new talent, and Necrophone Games deserves all the plaudits that will be thrown its way in the coming weeks.

Skillfully executed, but is it Gran Turismo? [Issue#194, p.78]

The truth of the matter is that Etrian Odyssey’s punishing difficulty is actually the key to its addictive allure. [Aug 2007, p.118]

Bomberman’s raison d’etre, Battle mode, is once again its saving grace. [Aug 2005, p.110]

Enigmatic in parts, frustrating in others, Dontnod demonstrates it can fuse the domestic with the supernatural with a deft hand, and succeeds in creating a pastel world brimming with intrigue in about three hours.

It turns out that, so befuddled is Star Wars Battlefront, that simply celebrating it for what it is feels dishonest. It’s an extraordinary mess of brilliant ideas melded with utterly harebrained ones; of thoughtful and charming fan service doing battle against a piledriving Palpatine and idiotic dialogue that sounds like it was recorded in a toilet.

Grow Home isn't the masterpiece you'll hang on the wall, it's the vase of tulips on the coffee table - appreciated at the time, but forgotten once they wither. [Issue#159, p.90]